Marlon Vera set for Davey Grant rematch at UFC Fight Night on June 19

Marlon ‘Chito’ Vera has been booked to fight Davey Grant at UFC Fight Night 190 on June 19. It’s a card that could well deliver fireworks with all-action featherweights Chan Sung Jung and Dan Ige going head-to-head in the main event.

Vera is pleased to be back in the Octagon. The outspoken South American was pleading for a fight just last week, tweeting: “May June July Just give me paperwork to sign the sooner the better.”

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He’s now got his wish, and the bout will be an opportunity for the Ecuadoran to avenge the loss he suffered at the hands of Grant in London back in 2016. Grant secured the unanimous decision on that occasion but he has only fought five times since then.

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Despite his relative lack of activity in the last five years, the Brit comes into the fight riding a three-fight winning streak that includes back-to-back “Performance of the Night” bonuses in his last two appearances.

In contrast, Vera will head into this one coming off of a unanimous decision loss to Jose Aldo at UFC Vegas 17 late last year. Before that, the talented bantamweight had shown some of the best form of his career. Over a two-year period between August 2018 and August 2020, he won six out of seven fights including a much-talked-about TKO victory against Sean O’Malley at UFC 252. 

O’Malley came into the fight with a huge amount of hype behind him but was stopped in his tracks by an infamous calf-kick followed by a flurry of strikes in the first round.

There was plenty of speculation surrounding the prospect of a rematch between the pair in recent months, although Vera recently suggested that the American turned down the opportunity for a second go.

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Replying to a fan who asked about the rematch on Twitter, Vera said: “He declined. I got offered, said yes and silence from him.”

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O’Malley is currently not inside the top 15 at 135lb but has been courting a dance with the former champion and 9th-ranked, Dominick Cruz.

Vera, meanwhile, slipped to 15th in the rankings following his loss to Aldo.

Despite the setback, ‘Chito’ is still only 28 years old and will be keen to get back in the win column as he seeks to climb the rankings once more.

Will Marlon Vera get back to winning ways against Davey Grant?